The Berlin office rental market recorded its weakest annual figure since 2009 in 2025. According to analyses by Cushman & Wakefield, space take-up from new leases and owner-occupancy amounted to 484,200 m² – a decrease of 11% compared to the previous year. This puts take-up 40% below the 10-year average.
In the fourth quarter of 2025, the turnover volume amounted to 117,800 m². Compared to the previous quarter, this corresponded to a sideways movement, but year-on-year turnover was 8% lower.
More deals – significantly smaller space sizes
‘We are seeing more deals, but significantly smaller leases,’ comments Dominic Rausch, Head of Office Agency Berlin and Regional Manager East at Cushman & Wakefield.
The number of deals rose to 730 in 2025, while the average deal size fell to around 700 m². Demand is particularly strong for modern, efficient office space in central locations. The majority of space sought is between 500 and 2,000 m². ‘Many existing spaces no longer meet today's requirements,’ says Dominic Rausch.
The public sector was particularly cautious. Its space turnover fell by 63% to 39,500 m² in 2025. The largest space consumers were companies in the information and communication technology (15%) and construction and real estate (13%) sectors.
The largest new lease in 2025 was the sole lease of the ‘Karlsgärten’ core renovation project, covering around 11,500 m² of rental space in the fourth quarter of 2025.
Prime rents stable, average rents down significantly
The sustainable achievable prime rent has remained unchanged since Q4 2023 at £45.00/m² per month. By contrast, the area-weighted average rent fell by 11% within a year to £25.90/m².
Vacancy rate exceeds the 10 per cent mark
The vacancy rate continued to rise. At the end of 2025, around 2.24 million m² of office space was vacant in Berlin, corresponding to a vacancy rate of 10.4 per cent. Among other things, this is due to high completion rates combined with extremely low pre-letting rates of only around 6 per cent recently.
In addition, the structural change of existing properties in need of renovation in B and C locations continues: in 2025 alone, Cushman & Wakefield observed that over 112,000 m² of office space was converted to alternative uses such as residential, hotel or serviced apartments.
Outlook for 2026
‘For 2026, we expect a slight upturn in space take-up, driven by several large requests for 5,000 m² or more and the further convergence of existing and asking rents. At the same time, construction volume is likely to fall below 700,000 m², reaching its lowest level since 2018,’ says Dominic Rausch.
